Coach happy with Hornets ahead of Cougars kick-off

Hornets get their 2011 campaign under way with a Northern Rail Cup tie against Keighley Cougars at Cougar Park tomorrow. It is the first of four group matches, with tough encounters against Widnes Vikings (away), Barrow Raiders (home) and Doncaster (home) to follow, so a winning start is essential as John Stankevitch’s men strive to qualify for the later stages.

Hornets get their 2011 campaign under way with a Northern Rail Cup tie against Keighley Cougars at Cougar Park tomorrow.

It is the first of four group matches, with tough encounters against Widnes Vikings (away), Barrow Raiders (home) and Doncaster (home) to follow, so a winning start is essential as John Stankevitch’s men strive to qualify for the later stages.

It has been a difficult build-up for the Hornets boss, with the premature retirements of Pete Fairhurst and Dave Kennedy compounded by news that captain Phil Wood looks almost certain to miss the entire season as he awaits confirmation he ruptured his cruciate ligaments in a pre-season friendly against Warrington Wolves. Wood was awaiting the results of scan due yesterday.

Despite these setbacks Stankevitch was in upbeat mood about his team’s prospects.

He said: "We are going into the Northern Rail Cup with all guns blazing. Last year was different, I came in late, the players started to train late and there was a lot of combination testing to do. We never had the luxury of having as many friendlies as we did this year.

"We have hit the ground running and, other than for Phil Wood’s injury, we have got what I consider to be our full strength squad available. The 17 who get picked will be the lads who have showed good form in the friendlies. There will be a few, who have played reasonably well, who will miss out and that’s the beauty of having a bigger squad.

"It’s a nice headache to have, I don’t want to get to the end of the week and be scrambling for players, but it is disappointing to have to leave lads out who are good players but just haven’t performed as well as they would have liked.

"Things could change as players hit form; we haven’t played a game competitively yet."

Hornets were edged out in a friendly at Keighley last month but Stankevitch felt that overall his team were better on the day, despite the loss.

He added: "I was really pleased with the performance and the result. Any new coach comes into a club and the players want to impress him and this was Jason Demetriou’s first game in charge.

"On the day I thought we were the smarter team.

"We were more persistent and patient. I think we just had individuals who made slight errors, uncharacteristic at times, and we conceded points from them.

"We’ve worked hard on defensive stuff, things that Keighley will throw at us. Jermaine Wray is a massive bonus for them coming off the bench and we have to make sure we control him. Demetriou is a proven performer. He’s played in the Super League with Wakefield for 10 years and he will bring bags of experience.

"We just need to go there with the right attitude and make sure we perform how we have done so far; high completion rates and solid defence."

The Keighley coach is ready to write a new chapter in his career when he takes charge of his first competitive game as Cougars’ head coach.

The respected Aussie has taken over from Barry Eaton, who left to become Iestyn Harris’ assistant at Crusaders.

Demetriou said: "I’ve been here for about a month and I am loving it. The players are starting to buy into what I’m trying to do, and we’re starting to see some results of that.

"There’ll be a tough mentality at the club and players need to learn that there are certain expectations of them. The team spirit at this place is phenomenal. It’s one of the best I’ve ever seen."

Prop Ryan Benjafield (shoulder) will be out for up to another month, while Jonny Simpson and Anthony Henderson (both knee) are also facing a number of weeks on the sidelines.

Demetriou, though, insisted: "We’ve got about 28 fit players and that’s a great way to start the season."